I rarely respond to your rigmarole......
Who went away justified...?
The dude who beat on his chest seeking mercy for being a sinner
Or the dude like you that boasted of his righteousness while thanking God he was not like the sinner....
Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.
The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: 'God, I thank you that I am not like other men--robbers, evildoers, adulterers--or even like this tax collector.
I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.'
"But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, 'God, have mercy on me, a sinner.'
"I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."
Luke 18:10-14
The difference between these two people was the tax collect recognized he needed Gods
mercy while the Pharisee thought he was ok.
Now free gracers follow a strange double path. They recognize they need Christ on the
cross to gain forgiveness of sins, at a distance, but not that they then need to walk in Jesus's
ways with a clean heart. They believe even though they choose to sin, it is already forgiven,
so do not need to feel sorrow, seek repentance, confession or re-establishing their walk with the
Lord. They will say they are sinners, unworthy, but refuse to do anything about it.
Those in the Kingdom are always in need of God, and have everything by the grace of God.
They are nothing in themselves but everything in Christs love flowing through them. Their pure
and holy walk is a blessing, a light in a dark world. A man is all that Christs makes Him, and all
that is built is only on who Christ is.
Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers.
1 Timothy 4:16
The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.
Some have wandered away from these and turned to meaningless talk.
They want to be teachers of the law, but they do not know what they are talking about or what they so confidently affirm.
1 Timothy 1:5-7
Now if peoples foundation is an impure heart, a bad conscience and an insincere faith,
it is impossible to take what they share to have any authority at all.
Go through this thread and find who is sharing about obtaining a pure heart from Christ
purified and made whole, and then how to walk in Jesus's ways. If you read scripture
with purity in your heart you will see Pauls encouragements. If you are impure you will find
it hard and miss all the phrases that show what you need to be.
The bible is a book of words, its power is when it dwells in peoples hearts and mind.
Just take one phrase, "you will save both yourself and your hearers."
Paul is saying only through persevering in the faith, keeping right doctrine will we be
saved. But ignore the word persever, and you will miss it all.
Just say teach correctly once, believe once, and you are sealed. So believing this
you will just not see the word, and go on as if one has certainty, which Paul is not
giving, at all.